


Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On

by JustCallMeAgent



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Avengers Tower, F/F, F/M, M/M, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, Rated t for language and violence, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, maybe PTSD, mentions of Kilgrave - Jessica Jones (TV)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-16
Packaged: 2019-04-20 22:46:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14271177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustCallMeAgent/pseuds/JustCallMeAgent
Summary: Two years after Captain America took down HYDRA in Washington DC, Steve is slowly trying to introduce a recovering Bucky Barnes to the world again. He's starting that by bringing him to live in the Avengers Tower and giving him a handler. Someone Steve thinks might be able to show Bucky that it is possible to move on from such a troubled past, perhaps even come out a better person from it.Steve never could have anticipated that the infallible Agent Kat Daniels would be Bucky's soulmate. Especially considering it's a well known fact that Agent Daniels doesn't have a soulmate. Or perhaps she merely lied to everyone to protect herself, and everyone else, from a dark past that still haunts her to this day.Soulmate AU





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So in light of Infinity War coming out in just a few short weeks, I started feeling really nostalgic for the good ol' days when there was marginally less pain for all our favourite characters. Which is when i came up with the idea to write some classic, domestic Avengers Tower AU with a soulmate AU and OC thrown in there for good measure! It may have slightly more angst than i originally intended but then again, it would be neither Marvel nor fanfiction without a bit of angst am I right? So, grab your favourite snack or beverage, make yourself comfortable and relax into the mindless bliss of reading a fanfic. Sorry if it's shit.

Kat Daniels had a dark past. A _very_ dark past. She could use the excuse that it wasn't her fault; that he made her do those things. But she'd be lying. She had done unspeakable things - but not because Kilgrave told her to, he never used his powers of persuasion on her. He never had to. No, she did it because she could. She murdered, and tortured, and inflicted all sorts of pain on people because that was what she was good at. That was what she was trained to do.

Even after Kilgrave left her for his new _plaything_ , Kat just moved on to the next psychopath that she could work for. The next shot-caller that she could use her skills for - or _on_. And that was her life, for a long time. Kill, torture, extract the information, get paid and move on. On to the next highest bidder, looking to employ her. That was her life, and she accepted it for what it was. That is, until Clint Motherfucking Barton showed up and decided to take her in like a damn stray.

Working for SHIELD was different though. She was never asked to do the things she had done before. Clint had made damn sure of that; said it was part of her recovery process or whatever. So, she went on missions, became a damn fine agent and even managed to find a friend in Natasha. Bonding over the fact that Clint had essentially looked at each of them and said, "That one. I'm gonna adopt that one.", and refused to take no for an answer until they had both turned a new leaf in their lives. Eventually, little by little, Kat began to gain her humanity back. She knew she would never completely get it back, not after the things she had done. But she was thankful, nonetheless, to Clint, and to SHIELD, for finally setting her straight. For giving her a second chance.

However, despite Kat's rehabilitation, so to speak, she knew in her heart that she would never escape that person she once was. No matter all the world-saving missions she went on, deep down she would always be that cold-hearted murderer, that relished the sight of her mark, screaming, and begging for mercy. She tried to tell herself that she was different now. For Clint's sake, and for her own. Because, truly, she wanted to be different. She wanted to be free from her past. But there was no escaping it. Somewhere deep inside her, she knew that she was still the woman that Kilgrave didn't need to brainwash. The woman that had willingly done his an so many others' bidding.

It was for that exact reason that Kat had vowed to herself to never meet her soulmate. Regardless of the endless hours spent staring at the grey words on her forearm, Kat had resolved a long time ago, to not get involved with her soulmate - or anyone for that matter. She was nothing but a broken woman, haunted by her past. Haunted by the trail of bodies that lay in her wake. And no one deserved to have a person like that as their soulmate. No one.

 

* * *

 

"Agent Daniels!"

"Hey Cap." Kat turned to face Steve Rogers as he half jogged down the hallway to reach her. When he stopped in front of her, she gave him a friendly smile and crossed her arms in a teasing manner. "How many times do i gotta tell you to call me Kat? Technically, I'm not even an agent anymore since SHIELD is gone."

"Sorry," Steve ducked his head and gave a small grin as though he'd been caught, "force of habit I guess." 

Kat shrugged in reply, dropping her arms to her side casually, "What can I do for you, Cap?"

"I have a favour to ask." Steve squared his shoulders and donned his Captain America Face, leading Kat to believe, whatever his request, it was highly unlikely that she was going to decline. Stronger-willed people than her have tried and failed to refuse that face.

"How big a favour we talking?" Kat asked, knowing full well that she was going to agree to whatever it was anyway. She noticed Steve's shoulders raise and fall in a deep breath, as if he was bracing himself before replying.

"I was wondering if you would be interested in becoming a handler for someone that's going to be living in the tower with us." Steve paused. Kat was about to answer but it seemed the Captain wasn't finished with his proposal yet. "They're more or less completely stable at this point, just a couple bumps to be smoothed out until they're cleared for duty, and I'll be around for the big things anyway. Tony - that is to say Tony  _and_   _I_ just feel that it might be good for them to have someone around that doesn't have too much...personal opinions on the matter."

"I don't know Cap." Kat replied, unsure, her nose wrinkling slightly. "Handling... isn't really my strong suit. Not too good with the whole empathy thing, you know? Maybe try Clint? He's good with that sort of thing."

Steve shook his head.

"This person," Steve hesitated, his head tilting to the side just barely, as though he was considering his next words carefully, "He's kind of a special case. He has a bit of a...controversial background."

"Ah." Kat nodded, as it finally clicked with her. "Let me guess; you spoke to Barton and he recommended you get your man a handler that  _understands_  what it's like to have a sketchy background? He figured it would be beneficial to both parties? "

"Romanoff, actually." Steve smiled guiltily. "And sketchy wasn't the word she used."

Kat scoffed.

"Dammit Nat." She shook her head in amusement. "Well what about Clint? He was my handler back in the day and did okay. Trust me, if it's a stray you've got, he's pretty good at getting them back in order."

"Clint's taking off tomorrow on a covert mission with Falcon and Widow." Steve shook his head, "It's looking like it could take a couple days, weeks even. Just so happens my guy arrives in tomorrow morning and we thought it would be for the best that he gets introduced to his handler on arrival. It might help him with settling into things here at the tower."

"Yeah, that makes sense I guess." Kat sighed. "Alright I'll do it."

Steve raised his eyebrows. Clearly he must have thought it was going to be a bit harder to convince Kat to take the job. But if she was being honest with herself, she could use a distraction around here. Living at the Avengers Tower was great and all, and she really appreciated that Tony hooked her up with a job after DC. But ever since SHIELD fell, most available missions were all about taking down HYDRA and since she wasn't an Avenger, she didn't get to go on a whole lot of field trips. These days, Kat mostly spent her time down in the labs, helping Bruce out with his work, and training in the tower's gym. Although what she was training for, Kat couldn't say. At this point, she figured it was more of a habit when she got bored than anything else.

"Thank you, Agent Daniels." Steve's grateful smile was so bright that Kat decided to let slide the 'Agent Daniels' thing just this once. Choosing instead, to dip her head in acceptance to his thanks.

"So," Kat began, "Does my new charge have a name?"

"Oh, right." Kat noticed the slight head tilt again, indicating that the Captain was hesitating to tell her something. "Agent Daniels, you are the new handler of Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes."

Now, Kat is a former agent of SHIELD. Before that, she was a pretty accomplished figure in her respective field and she now works with a bunch of superheroes and spies. Such a person learns very early on to maintain a certain air of composure in situations that might disarm a less experienced individual. Which is why, when she found out that she would be watching over the Winter freaking Soldier, she absolutely did  _not_ allow her jaw to drop down to her feet like a damn cartoon. Absolutely not.

"I'm sorry." Kat straightened her back and tried to shake the surprise from her face, "Do you mean to say that the _Winter Soldier_ is coming to live with us in the tower and that I'm going to be in charge of keeping him out of trouble?" 

It wasn't until Kat saw the tension form in Steve's shoulders and his jaw jumping from being clenched too hard, that she realised what she had said might've sounded like she had something against Captain America's formerly brainwashed best friend. In actual fact, she had nothing against the man. Hell, back in Dark Kat's days (as Clint liked to refer to her time as a monster), she had admired the work of the fabled Winter Soldier. Then two years ago, when HYDRA was revealed to be hiding within SHIELD, and Captain America came forward to defend his long lost friend and explain that he too was a victim of HYDRA, Kat had sympathised with the poor bastard.

"Well what am i supposed to do with him?" Kat shrugged and asked the Captain, breaking the tension.

Steve seemed to visibly relax. His shoulders dropped back to their usual level of tension, maintaining that military stance that seemed ingrained into the soldier.

"Mostly, you'll just be aiding him to integrate himself back into everyday life." Steve replied, "Giving him a routine to work with. I understand you work with Dr Banner quite frequently?"

Kat nodded.

"Bucky's been recovering quite well in the care of myself and a few select others." Steve continued, "However, it might not be the smartest idea to bring him near any labs. At least not for a while. Tony has arranged for his sessions with our resident therapist to coincide with your time spent in the labs. You will have access to his evaluations from each session as we'll need you to give myself and Tony monthly reports on Bucky's progress. Otherwise, we just need you to spend time with him; train with him, eat with him, show him that it's possible to come back from everything he's been through. I'll be around for anything, if needed." At that last part, Kat swore she could see the desperation in Steve's eyes, as if he really  _really_ wanted to be needed in helping Bucky. But she could also tell by his restraint in stepping in, that he understood that he was just too close to things. If he truly wanted Bucky to get better, he had to take a step back and let him. But it was clearly killing him.

"Reckon I can do that." Kat gave a small smile to reassure Steve and judging by his expression, she thought it worked.

"Thank you, Kat." Steve said, before handing her a file she hadn't noticed he was holding earlier," This is everything you'll need to know about your new charge. Bucky will be arriving at the tower in the early hours tonight so you can meet him tomorrow. The communal kitchen might be the best place for a first meeting, before anyone gets up. Buck tends to feel safer when he's within reach of a knife." Steve added over his shoulder, as he turned and walked back up the direction he came from.

Kat shot her head up from the file she had already started skimming through.

"That better be a joke, Rogers!" She yelled at his retreating back.

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Kat stayed up all night reading and then re-reading the file on Bucky Barnes. The guy has been through some serious shit. 

By the time she finally forced herself to close the file for good, sleep wasn't even an option. There were certain images in that folder that simply couldn't be unseen. 

Glancing at the little analogue alarm clock on her bedside locker, and discovering it was just a few minutes before 5.00 am, Kat decided that she may as well get ready and head down to the communal kitchen. Steve hadn't given a specific time for her to meet them at, but considering he seemed to think it was a good idea to get to the kitchen before anyone else was up, Kat figured the earlier the better. She had to wonder though. If it was really Steve's intention for Bucky to meet her somewhere free from prying eyes, then why suggest the communal kitchen? After all, they lived in a building full of spies, soldiers, and generally just a lot of people that have experienced trauma of some kind - not a whole lot of sleeping happening in the building. It was almost a sure guarantee that there was at least one person sitting in the kitchen, nursing a coffee, at any hour of the day - or night for that matter.

As if to prove her point, when Kat walked into the communal area of the tower the first thing she saw was a small figure perched on the breakfast counter. The person in question was hunched over an old tattered notebook, muttering about what sounded like some kind of science mumbo-jumbo.

"Dr. Foster." Kat tried and failed to keep the amused smirk off her face, as she greeted the scientist. "Do you know that you've poured coffee in your cereal instead of milk?"

Her words seemed to grab the attention of Jane Foster for barely a second. Kat watched on in disbelief as the scientist shot her head up to peer into her cereal bowl, notice her mistake and let out a small "huh" sound, then return to her work as if nothing had happened. Kat shook her head in amusement, deciding to let the scientist be. She doubted Dr. Foster was actually going to eat the cereal anyway so what did it matter?

After fixing herself a coffee, Kat walked over to the large window that looked out over the city. Signs of daylight were only just starting to show, the sky tinged with a lilac hue, yet the city below was already wide awake. The roads below her were rapidly filling up with the cars of commuters on their way to work. Just another ordinary day in their ordinary lives. Kat tried to recall the last time she was able to call her life ordinary. If there ever was such a time, it must have been so long ago that her mind had simply let the memory of it go. She had long ago accepted the fact that she would never live a normal life. Quite frankly, after the things she'd done, Kat wasn't sure she deserved one anyway, and yet, at times like these, as she stood drinking her coffee and observed the morning bustle of New York City, Kat could  _almost_ imagine herself living like that. Settle down, maybe even meet her soulmate, no missions to complete, no superhero friends to worry about getting hurt all the time, and the thing that she dreamt of most of all; no ghosts following her around every waking hour.

Kat sighed deeply into her coffee mug. How was she supposed to help Barnes see that there's life after doing such terrible things, when she herself still woke up in cold sweats, to the sounds of her victims' screams? She wasn't even sure if she would be any good at this whole handler shtick. She wished she could give Clint a call and ask for some advice but he had probably already left for his mission with Nat and Wilson.

"Agent Daniels." The sound of her name pulled Kat out of her thoughts and she took a moment to rearrange her facial expressions before turning around to greet the two men standing by the fridge. At some point Jane had left the kitchen, her coffee/cereal mixture all but forgotten on the breakfast counter, so the only people left in the large room were the three of them.

"Cap." Kat greeted with a smile and then a polite nod to the man beside him. Obviously, Sergeant Barnes. He was shorter than Kat had originally thought. Although his rigid, guarded demeanour quickly took the attention away from his height. She couldn't help but recognise the signature glances he kept taking, letting Kat know that he was taking note of exits, other people in the room and possible weapons he might need to use. Understandable, she reasoned. Over half the people living in the tower probably did the same thing every time they entered a room. Hell, she was one of those people. What caught her off guard, however, was his next move. Kat could see the man visibly force his shoulders to relax and display a sort of calm dispostion. Impressive. Perhaps Kat's new job wouldn't be as difficult as she had originally assumed.

Kat brought her attention back to Steve, as his posture straightened in preparation to speak.

"Agent Da -  _Kat_." Steve corrected himself, with a sheepish smile at Kat's pointed look. "I'd like to officially introduce you to Bucky Barnes." He faced Barnes then and gestured towards Kat. "Buck, this is your new handler, Agent Katalina Daniels. Kat here has fought along side the avengers many times and before that, she was a very skilled SHIELD agent."

You can stop there Cap, Kat thought to herself, thanking her stars that Steve didn't mention what she was before SHIELD. Honestly, she wasn't even sure if Cap knew about it completely. She doubted it. Besides, Clint, Nat and Fury, the most anyone knew about Kat's past was that it was pretty shady. No details. But then again, wasn't the whole reason she was chosen to help Barnes out because she, like him, had done awful things in the past and managed to get out okay? So maybe Cap knows more than he's letting on.

Kat drove those thoughts away from her mind and turned to the dark haired man, with a friendly smile on her face.

" _It's a pleasure, Ma'am._ " Barnes stuck his hand out in greeting, completely casual, as if he hadn't just bloody turned Kat's entire world fucking sideways.

 

* * *

 

Kat wasn't sure what to do. She felt like both laughing hysterically and falling to her knees, crying out an apology. Or maybe she could just run away? All three perhaps?

Of all people. It had to be him. James Buchanan Barnes, the Winter _freaking_ Soldier, was her soulmate. She was completely dumbfounded. Her brain just couldn't seem to process it. So it settled on denial instead. 

" _Likewise, Mr Barnes._ " Mister? He's a bloody sergeant! Kat's brain chastised.

Thankfully, in the few seconds it had took Kat to cover up the shock of hearing the words of her soulmark, her body hadn't betrayed her. She had maintained her casual demeanour and her voice had seemed steadier than she thought possible.

Barnes, however, was another story completely. His blue eyes were blown wide, his entire body stiffened and his mouth fell agape just slightly. He seemed to be fixed on the woman standing in front of him. His soulmate. 

Acting as though she hasn't noticed the change in Barnes, Kat took the hand that was still outstretched in front of her and gave it one brief shake. It took every bit of will power Kat possessed to not glance down at her forearm to ensure that the cover up make up she applied daily was still in place over her soulmark. But it felt like it was itching. Judging her for lying so easily. Can a soulmark judge you? Resisting the urge to sneak a peek at her words, Kat decided that yes, it  _can_ judge you.

Seeking any form of distraction possible, Kat turned to face Steve. No such luck, however. Judging by his gobsmacked expression and the fact that his head was flitting back and forth between the two like a damn yo-yo, Kat figured it was safe to presume that Steve knew what Barnes' words were and he knew that she had just said them. Perfect.

"Anyway," Kat tried, desperately grasping for a way out of the situation, "I have to get going. No doubt Bruce is in the lab already and i wanted to get there early today. It was nice to meet you Mr Bar -  _Sergeant_ Barnes. I'm sure you'll want to relax your first day here and settle into the place so I'll leave you be today. I'll be in touch with you later - or tomorrow perhaps, to discuss - " Kat cleared her throat awkwardly, "to discuss the basics of being your handler." She nodded at the two men, both of whom hadn't moved since she began rambling, and giving them both a quick smile, walked away as fast as she could without it looking suspicious.

 

* * *

 

Once Agent Daniels disappeared out the door to the kitchen, it took a full two minutes for Steve to finally come to his senses. He turned to face Bucky, unable to hide the shock from his voice.

"Did she just - ? Is she - ? "Do you think she - ?" Steve spluttered.

Bucky blinked a few times before finally turning to face his best friend. They both stared at each other in silence, for about half a second, and then Bucky was frantically ripping off his jacket and yanking the hem of his t-shirt up to reveal his lower torso. There, on the right side of his stomach, were the previously grey words, _"_ _Likewise, Mr Barnes"_  , now in a bold, jet black.  Bucky gently brushed his fingers over the words, as if to make sure they were real. When, the dark colour didn't smudge or fade under his touch, Bucky raised his gaze to Steve, who had a slightly troubled crease between his eyebrows.

"Steve." Bucky said lowly, "Steve, she didn't even react to my words."

The frown on Steve's face deepened, his eyes holding something akin to pity and sorrow in them.

"Steve?"

"Buck," Steve began slowly, his voice low and full of pity for his best friend, "Kat; she - she doesn't have a soulmate. She's a blank. It's..it's on her file. Everyone knows she doesn't have a soulmark. I'm so sorry Buck."

Bucky's stomach dropped. He felt like he was falling off that train all over again.

Back in the 40's, Bucky didn't have a soulmark. He was a blank for as long as he could remember. He had made his peace with it back then, started dating a few dames - a lot, actually. He told himself that he didn't need a soulmate; he had Steve. His brother, who also happened to be a blank. It was fine, just the two of them together, 'til the end of the line. 

But when Steve managed to wake him up in Washington, that all changed. _He had words_. And later, when Steve found him and convinced Bucky to let him help, he discovered that Steve had gotten words in the future too. He had even met his soulmate already. It was like a second chance, for the both of them. And after everything that Bucky had done as the Winter Soldier, the idea that he was still worthy of a second chance in having a soulmate meant the world to him. It gave him a reason to try. To push the Winter Soldier out and keep on trying, even on the bad days. He was determined to get better, for his soulmate. Because whoever they were, they deserved more than the broken shell of a man he was right now. But this? This wasn't right. He was so close to being himself again, he could feel it. But it was too soon, he wasn't supposed to meet her yet. He wasn't ready yet.

Not that it mattered, he realised. Because while she may be his soulmate, he wasn't hers, and Bucky didn't really know what he was supposed to do with that information.

 

* * *

 

Kat didn't allow herself to relax until she was safely inside the tower elevator. 

Leaning against the wall of the elevator, she slid to the floor with a sigh, her hands covering her face.

"Rough morning?"

Kat jumped about a foot off the ground. She had been so lost in her own scrambled thoughts, she hadn't even noticed Tony Stark standing in the right-hand corner of the elevator when she walked in.

"I just met my soulmate." Kat breathed, too emotionally drained to keep to up any pretences. Tony Stark may not have been the best person to reveal that particular secret to but she had to tell someone before she burst and Clint was gone on that stupid bloody mission and so was Nat and Tony, well, Tony was just  _there._

"Wait, I thought you didn't have a soulmate?" Tony immediately perked up at this new revelation. He was bored with the usual gossip going around the tower and this was some juicy stuff. "It says so in your file."

"Blanks get better missions and higher ranked positions in organisations like SHIELD. No distractions." Kat shrugged, not her most convincing lie she'll admit.

"Okay, smart move I guess." Tony relented, knowing that was clearly only part of the reason but deciding not to pry too much. "But there is no SHIELD anymore, and the Avengers aren't like that. Hell, just look at Cap and Sam. Those lovebirds even manage to be sickeningly perfect together on missions, let alone here in the tower. So what's the problem?"

Kat looked up at Tony, a kind of desperation written on her face. 

"It's Bucky Barnes." She sighed.

Tony's eyebrows almost shot straight off his forehead.

"Now that  _is_ interesting. The  _Winter Soldier_  is your soulmate? And here I was, thinking Pepper got the short stick with me." Tony laughed, thoroughly enjoying this. The great Agent Daniels, the smooth talking, calm, collected, ruthless agent that Tony was convinced was cooked up in a lab to be a Christmas present to Nick Fury himself, reduced to a spluttering mess on his elevator floor.

"Aren't you the very one that once said that something so trivial as a soulmate has been 'taken by society and romanticised, and turned into this important thing merely to justify the fact that our free will to choose a partner has been taking away from us'? I always just figured that was something a bitter blank was saying." Tony shrugged noncommittally, "But now...I'm sensing you said it for a different reason?"

Kat looked up at Tony again, and this time there was something in her eyes that Tony had never seen before. She looked ashamed.

"I acted like nothing even happened, Tony. He said my words and I said his,and then I just walked away. Like it was nothing."

A short pause then. Kat eyed Tony, waiting for his response.

"Wow." Tony laughed. "I think that's even worse than my reaction to meeting Pepper! Trust me, you don't want to know." He added, before Kat could ask. She didn't.

Another second passed and then Kat let out a breath, and stood from her perch on the floor.

"So?" Tony pushed,"What are you gonna do?"

Kat squared her shoulders and raised her head, just as the elevator doors opened on her floor. 

"Nothing." She sighed. "I never wanted a soulmate. Always knew that. I'm not gonna let some damn words dictate my life. Besides, he's still recovering from everything that happened to him. He's got enough on his plate right now and it's supposed to be my job to help him get back to a normal life. So, I'm going to do my job."

"So, strictly business then?" Tony couldn't help but think that taking that approach wasn't going to last too long. But for once, he managed to keep his mouth shut and leave the kid with some hope still intact.

"Exactly." Kat confirmed, her expression steeled.

"Well, good luck Kid." Tony added as Kat stepped out of the elevator and onto her floor. "And don't worry. I'll keep this little secret between me and you."

"Thanks, Tony." Kat gave him a grateful smile, as the elevator doors slid shut.

Right, she thought to herself, strictly business. She was going to do her job and watch out for Barnes. Starting tomorrow she would take him to the gym for some friendly sparring, then spend the day getting to know him on a non-soulmate level. Simple.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Leave a comment if you feel like it!


End file.
